The IRS announced on Wednesday that the due date for individual federal income tax returns has been postponed to May 17, 2021.  The postponement also applies to individuals who pay self-employment tax.  The extension is automatic: individuals will not need to apply or otherwise alert the IRS in order to take advantage of the extension.

Individuals who need additional time to file beyond May 17 can still apply for an extension to file before October 15.

This extension does not apply to estimated payments that are due on April 15, nor does it apply to federal gift tax returns or income tax returns for trusts and estates.

On January 1, 2021, Congress enacted the National Defense Authorization Act (the NDAA”). One portion of the NDAA includes the Corporate Transparency Act (the “CTA”), which is described as the most comprehensive anti-money laundering legislation passed in the United States and which regulates the use of anonymous entities for money laundering, tax evasion, and financing terrorism.  The CTA requires certain entities, including limited liability companies, corporations, and “similar entities,” to disclose their individual owners and their “beneficial owners”, meaning those who own or control at least 25% of the entity.  The legislation is aimed at preventing these “shell companies” from hiding illegal activity.

The statute states that the CTA only applies to entities that are created by filing a document with a secretary of state or a similar office, or are formed under the laws of a foreign country, but are registered to do business in the United States through

BCLP Partner Stephanie Kriegel was quoted in a February 27, 2021 article published in the Wall Street Journal Online entitled “Declutter the Filing Cabinet: What to Save, Move to Cloud, or Shred.”  In this article, Kriegel discusses the importance of retaining physical copies of your estate planning documents.  The entire article can be found here.

The 7520 rate for January 2021 remained at 0.6%.

The January 2021 Applicable Federal Interest Rates can be found here.

With the end of the year approaching, we thought now would be a good time to re-post and update our annual blog entry on gifting.

For 2021, the annual exclusion gift amount will remain the same as 2020’s at $15,000, but the lifetime gift and estate tax exemption will increase to $11,700,000 (up from 2020’s $11,540,000).

With ten days left in the year, many people are still planning how to make 2020 gifts, whether by making “annual exclusion” gifts of $15,000 per beneficiary, or by taking advantage of the 2020 gift tax exemption amount of $11,540,000.  Whatever the reason for the last-minute gifting, as the end of the year approaches, people may be tempted to make a “quick and easy” gift to their beneficiaries by simply writing a check. As the year draws to a close, however, if your gift is dependent on utilizing 2020 tax law, beware of the

BCLP Partners Doug Stanley and Kathy Sherby presented at the Missouri Bar 2020 Annual Estate, Trust & Elder Law Institute held on December 10 and 11, 2020.  Kathy discussed the topic SECURE ACT: How it Changes Basic Planning Strategies and also the topic The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly: Ethical Representation in a Pandemic.  Doug presented on the topic Tax Issue Spotting.

The 7520 rate for December 2020 increased to 0.6%.

The December 2020 Applicable Federal Interest Rates can be found here.

The 7520 rate for October 2020 remained at 0.4%.

The October 2020 Applicable Federal Interest Rates can be found here.

The 7520 rate for September 2020 remained at 0.4%.

The September 2020 Applicable Federal Interest Rates can be found here.

St. Louis Counsel Elizabeth Schlesinger has been named to the St. Louis Business Journal’s 2020 class of Diverse Business Leaders.

The Business Journal established its awards program to salute those who promote diversity around race, sexual orientation and disability. The personal and professional backgrounds of this year’s 20 honorees “demonstrate the increasingly important role that diversity and inclusion play in the workplace and community,” the publication stated.

Schlesinger is an active participant in numerous volunteer and community activities, with a particular focus on LGBTQ advocacy. She has championed LGBTQ rights issues inside the legal community and in the broader community, both in St. Louis and nationally. Among her numerous civic involvements, she is currently the chair of the National Board of Governors of the Human Rights Campaign.

At BCLP, Schlesinger is a member of the firm’s Private Client Group. Her practice involves estate planning and administration, with a focus on wealth transfer tax planning.